The present invention relates to the field of identity management and, more particularly, to a multi-media identity management system.
Access control systems have become a commonplace feature of most people's daily lives—from usernames and passwords to access computers and/or online data to automated teller machine (ATM) cards and identification numbers (e.g. PINs) to withdraw cash. Many organizations incorporate additional levels of security, both physical and digital, into their access control systems, especially those that protect sensitive physical areas, items, and/or data. Thus, it has become common for people, particularly those who work in organizations that utilize multiple and/or varying levels of access control protocols, to encounter issues managing their access data and/or physical artifacts.
For example, a person may have to juggle a username and password to log onto the company's network, an access card and PIN number to enter a first lab, a different access card and security code to enter a second lab, a security code for a cabinet to access chemicals in the lab, and another username and password set to view lab data. In addition to remembering these important pieces of information, the person must also keep track of another set of access information (e.g., online account usernames and passwords, PIN numbers, etc.).
A variety of approaches have been developed to help mitigate these types of issues like single sign-on network authentication and “electronic wallets”. While these approaches are useful in some situations, they do not address situations where the user must provide different types of physical artifacts or where the different systems that capture the authentication input are unable to communicate. Further, these conventional approaches do not verify that the user accesses only a specific area or is in the presence of a specified individual when the area is accessed.